Skip Navigation
*To search for student contact information, login to FlashLine and choose the "Directory" icon in the FlashLine masthead (blue bar).

American Sign Language - B.A. PDFDownload to print

College
College of Arts and Sciences

Department
Department of Modern and Classical Language Studies

109 Satterfield Hall
Tel: 330-672-2150
Fax: 330-672-4009
Web: http://www.kent.edu/mcls
 

Description

The Bachelor of Arts in American Sign Language (ASL) presents ASL as a culture- and community-based language that interacts with other world languages. Through techniques including immersion and bilingual-bicultural comparison classes, community interaction, research, lab activities and use of digital video technology, students gain documented proficiency in ASL, validity within the deaf community and networking within the professional community. 

Career Opportunities

ASL majors are employed in a number of areas where bilingual skills are valuable.  Graduates who minor in second language education/pedagogy may pursue licensure for teaching American Sign Language in K-12 settings.  Other graduates work in mental health settings, non-profit agencies, and Community Centers for the Deaf.  ASL majors may also go on to graduate programs in counseling, psychology, education, special education, medicine, legal studies, vocational rehabilitation and interpreting.

For more information on teaching ASL see the minor in Education in the College of Education, Health and Human Services.

Admission Requirements

General Admissions for Freshman Students: Admission Requirements at the Kent Campus: The freshman admission policy at the Kent Campus is selective. Admission decisions are based upon the following: cumulative grade point average, ACT and/or SAT scores, strength of high school college preparatory curriculum and grade trends.

The university affirmatively strives to provide educational opportunities and access to students with varied backgrounds, those with special talents and adult students who graduated from high school three or more years ago. For more information on admissions, visit the admissions website for new freshmen.

General Admissions for Transfer Students: Generally, a transfer applicant who has taken 12 or more semester hours with a college cumulative GPA of at least 2.0 on a 4.0 scale may be admitted. An applicant who has taken fewer than 12 semester hours will be evaluated on both collegiate and high school records. For more information on admissions, visit the admissions website for transfer students..
 

Progression Requirements

School Psychology (M.Ed., Ed.S.), Secondary Education(M.A.T., M.Ed.), Special Education (Ed.S.), Translation (M.A.)

Alumni have successfully applied to multiple graduate programs including linguistics, rehabilitation, special education, library science, medicine, and political science.
 

Graduation Requirements

Minimum 120 total credit hours and 42 upper-division hours for graduation. Minimum 2.000 GPA overall and 2.000 GPA in major required for graduation.

Study Abroad/Away Opportunities

The Sienna School for Liberal Arts, in Siena, Italy.  Scholarship opportunities are available.

Accreditation

The ASL major at KSU is the only program in the nation to have obtained national recognition and accreditation from the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) and the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL)

Student Organizations

American Sign Language Club

Culminating Requirements

Successful community service projects in ASL 29202, 39201, and 39202; documentation of a proficiency level of Intermediate or above on the Sign Language Proficiency Interview (administered off-site), and successful completion of the capstone project in ASL 49201.

Advanced Degree Programs

School Psychology (M.Ed., Ed.S.), Secondary Education(M.A.T., M.Ed.), Special Education (Ed.S.), Translation (M.A.)

Alumni have successfully applied to multiple graduate programs including linguistics, rehabilitation, special education, library science, medicine, and political science.